Expecting local govt autonomy from Nigeria’s Constitution unrealistic — Fashola

Former Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, has stated that it is unrealistic to expect true local government autonomy in Nigeria under the current constitutional arrangement.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise programme on Saturday, Fashola argued that the constitutional framework guiding local councils inherently undermines their independence, particularly due to the role played by state governments and their legislative arms.

“I think that the debate we must have, debate we must have, is whether we really want autonomous local governments. It’s a debate that must be had. As it stands today, it is unrealistic to expect autonomy for local governments created by the Constitution,” he said.

Fashola maintained that state Houses of Assembly, which are empowered to make laws for local governments, constitute an external authority that contradicts the essence of autonomy.

“They were not meant to be autonomous; that is my view after a very close reading of certain provisions of the Constitution. Some of those provisions provide, for example, that the local government in its economic activities and all of that will have laws made for it by the state House of Assembly.

“If you look at the legal and ordinary meaning of the word, autonomy, it suggests that you are acting independently without any outside influence and authority, and to that extent, a state House of Assembly making laws for what and how a local government can function is in itself an external influence that contradicts the idea of autonomy,” the former governor added.

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He further stressed that land, a critical resource for local governments to deliver services, remains under the control of state governments, thereby limiting councils’ operational independence.

“The next thing, of course, is to look in the Fourth Schedule of the constitution and look at all of the responsibilities that are assigned to local governments, such as the operation of slaughterhouses, abattoirs for animals, cemeteries, building of rules, advertising hoardings, primary schools, primary healthcare centres, all of those responsibilities are dependent on one item, land.

“And to the extent that the state government controls land, which affects how the local governments will carry out these functions, I didn’t think that autonomy was intended. Now, if we decide that we want autonomous local governments, those are some of the things we have to free up if that is our decision.”

He noted that the constitutional provisions point more towards a collaborative or supervisory relationship between state and local governments rather than full autonomy.

“So we must have an agreement, but as it stands, I don’t think that autonomy was intended. What I think was intended was some sort of collaboration, some sort of supervision, some sort of an oversight of the state over the local government, and that is inherent in what you will find in Section 162, which deals with the state’s joint local government account.”

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